Manager Joe Maddon looks like the kind of guy who teaches your kids or would meet you after work for a beer after a hard day’s work. He is the everyman type of manager and it works with the young veteran team that the Rays have. He always seems to come up with some quirky little mottos that get the team in gear. Maddon led the Rays to a 84-78 (51.9%) record last season which was viewed as a disappointment to a lot of people but it was only the second .500+ performance in Rays/Devil Rays’ history. The reason it was such a disappointment is because the Rays won the American League in 2008 before losing to the Phillies in the World Series. Maddon now has a 308-340 record (47.5%) in his four years with the Rays. This is Maddon’s most talented roster ever heading into the season so it will be interesting to see if he can get them back to the playoffs in 2010. He now has a career record of 335-364 (47.9%) in his career as a major league manager.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MANAGER IN 2010: A

The Rays really didn’t have a legit closer last season after Troy Percival was injured. So they decided to do something about it by trading for Rafael Soriano. Soriano pitched in 77 games (0 starts) for the Braves last season and he was 1-6 with 27 saves, a 2.97 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He only allowed 53 hits while whiffing 102 batters in only 75 2/3 innings last season showing just how nasty his stuff really is. Soriano is the real deal for the Rays as they can feel confident that he will close out games for them in 2010.

26-year old lefty J.P. Howell will miss the first month of the season due to shoulder soreness. He pitched in 69 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season in which he was 7-5 with 17 saves, a 2.84 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. He only gave up 49 hits in 66 2/3 innings last season while whiffing 79 batters. With the numbers Howell put up last season you would think he has great stuff but he doesn’t. He dominates because he really knows how to pitch. The Rays will miss him while he is out of action.

32-year old righty Dan Wheeler will likely be the top set-up man for the Rays until J.P. Howell is ready to return to action. Wheeler pitched in 69 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season and he was 4-5 with 2 saves, a 3.28 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. He did have huge issues with the long ball last season as he gave up 11 homers and the Rays need him to fix that problem. In the last two years, Wheeler has pitched in 139 games (0 starts) in which he was 9-11 with 5 saves, a 3.19 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. He has only given up 85 hits (21 homers) in 124 innings the last two years for the Rays. I think he’ll have another good year for the Rays in 2010.

32-year old righty Grant Balfour will be looking to rebound from an off year in 2009. Balfour pitched in 73 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season and he was 5-4 with 4 saves, a 4.81 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. He gave up only 59 hits in 67 1/3 innings for the Rays last season while whiffing 69 batters showing he has good stuff…which he does, but he walked 33 batters last year and that is way too many. The Rays need the Balfour of 2008 in 2010. In 2008, Balfour pitched in 51 games (0 starts) in which he was 6-2 with 4 saves, a 1.54 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. He only gave up 28 hits in 2008 for the Rays while whiffing 82 batters in only 58 1/3 innings pitched. I don’t think Balfour will be as good as he was in 2008 but not as bad as he was in 2009 in 2010 for the Rays.

34-year old lefty Randy Choate will be the Rays’ top reliever from the left side until J.P. Howell returns to action. Choate pitched in 61 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season in which he was 1-0 with 5 saves, a 3.47 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. Choate only gave up 28 hits while whiffing 28 batters in 36 1/3 innings as he pitched the best ball of his career in 2009 with the Rays. The Rays are hoping that Choate keeps up the good work in 2010.

29-year old righty Lance Cormier also pitched the best ball of his career in 2009 for the Rays. Cormier pitched in 53 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season and he was 3-3 with 2 saves, a 3.26 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Cormier really pitched solid for the Rays in middle relief last season and they hope it wasn’t a fluke.

32-year old righty Joaquin Benoit has a nice upside if he can just stay healthy. He missed all of last season due to injury. Benoit has pitched in 273 games (55 starts) in his major league career and he is 30-26 with 8 saves, a 4.79 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. The Rays are hoping that Benoit can pitch like he did in 2007 when he appeared in 70 games (0 starts) and was 7-4 with 6 saves, a 2.85 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP.

29-year old righty Dale Thayer is too good for the minors so he either needs to make the Rays this season or move on to another team for his own sake. Thayer pitched in 11 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season in which he was 0-0 with 1 save, 4.61 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. Thayer also pitched in 51 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 2-5 with 17 saves, a 2.27 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP.

32-year old righty Winston Abreu is back fighting for a job in the pen in 2010 for the Rays. He pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Rays & Indians last season in which he was 0-0 with a 10.50 ERA and a 2.33 WHIP. He also pitched in 37 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year in which he was 3-1 with 15 saves, a 1.94 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP. He only gave up 23 hits in the minors last season while whiffing 77 batters in only 51 innings pitched which is pretty amazing. He will likely get a chance to pitch for the Rays at some point in 2010.

26-year old lefty R.J. Swindle could have a good shot to make the Opening Day bullpen in 2010 due to the injury to J.P. Howell. Swindle pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Brewers last season and he was 0-0 with a 16.20 ERA and a 2.40 WHIP. He also pitched in 37 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 4-1 with 2 saves, a 1.43 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Swindle has been dominating his whole minor league career and the Rays hope that he can covert that success to the majors.

28-year old lefty Heath Phillips will also be in the hunt for a job in the bullpen when the season starts. He pitched in 27 games (25 starts) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 8-7 with a 4.99 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Phillips’ only experience in the majors was in 2007 when he pitched in 6 games (0 starts) and was 1-1 with a 3.68 ERA and a 1.91 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BULLPEN IN 2010: B

The Rays will be without 26-year old lefty reliever J.P. Howell for at least one month due to a sore left shoulder. Howell pitched in 69 games (0 starts) for the Rays last season and he was 7-5 with 17 saves, a 2.84 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. He has really been outstanding the last two seasons for the Rays working in 133 games (0 starts) in which he was 13-6 with 20 saves, a 2.48 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. The Rays can’t really replace Howell but Randy Choate will do his best.

28-year old righty James Shields will be the graybeard of the Rays in 2010. Shields started 33 games for the Rays last season and he was11-12 with a 4.14 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He gave up 239 hits in 219 2/3 innings last season for the Rays but he did strike out 167 batters. Shields is super aggressive in the strike zone as he backs down from no hitter. Shields has started 118 games in his four years with the Rays in which he is 43-36 with a 4.01 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. Look for double digit wins and 200+ innnings out of Shields in 2010.

26-year old righty Matt Garza is just plain nasty. He has a wicked arsenal and he loves throwing inside to intimidate. This could be the year that Garza really breaks out for the Rays. Garza started 32 games for the Rays last year and he was 8-12 with a 3.95 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He only gave up 177 hits in 203 innings for the Rays while striking out 209 batters. In his two years with the Rays, Garza has started 62 games in which he is 19-21 with a 3.83 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. I look for Garza to win at least 15 games in 2010 with over 200 strikeouts as he will benefit from the Rays having a real closer in 2010.

24-year old lefty David Price didn’t have the rookie year that many expected of him in 2009 but I expect him to have a good year in 2010. Price started 23 games for the Rays last year and he was 10-7 with a 4.42 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. He only gave up 119 hits in 128 1/3 innings while whiffing 102 batters. Price pitched much better in the second half of last season and I look for that success to carry over to 2010. Think 13-15 wins with 150+ K’s in 2010 out of Price.

27-year old righty Jeff Niemann should have won the Rookie of the Year Award in the American League last season. He pitched in 31 games (30 starts) for the Rays last year and he was 13-6 with a 3.94 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Niemann is a big guy at 6′11″ but he’s not an intimidator as he throws in the low 90’s. Look for Niemann to give the Rays solid production out of the #4 spot in the rotation in 2010.

24-year old righty Wade Davis is having a rough spring but the Rays should still use him as the #5 starter in 2010. Davis started 6 games for the Rays at the end of the year and he was 2-2 with a 3.72 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. He struck out 36 batters in 36 1/3 innings for the Rays and he also threw a shutout showing that he has the stuff to succeed. Davis also started 28 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 10-8 with a 3.40 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP.

27-year old righty Andy Sonnanstine is competing with Davis for the #5 spot in the starting rotation. Sonnanstine pitched in 22 games (18 starts) for the Rays last season and he was 6-9 with a 6.77 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. He gave up 136 hits in 99 2/3 innings last season which shows that he doesn’t have the stuff to really succeed in the majors. Sonnanstine has pitched in 76 games (72 starts) in his three years with the Rays and he is 25-28 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP.

22-year old righty Jeremy Hellickson is the Rays’ #2 prospect according to Baseball America and I have a feeling that he will make his major league debut in 2010. Hellickson started 20 games in AA+AAA ball last year in which he is 9-2 with a 2.45 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. He only gave up 72 hits in 114 innings last season in the minors while whiffing 132 batters. He doesn’t have dominating stuff but he knows how to pitch. He has pitched in 87 games (82 starts) in his five years in the majors and he is 37-13 with a 2.71 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP.

22-year old lefty Alex Torres is the Rays’ #9 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. He came over to the Rays in the Scott Kazmir trade last summer. Torres pitched in 28 games (26 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 13-6 with a 2.77 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. In his four year minor league career, Torres has pitched in 60 games (49 starts) in which he is 23-13 with 1 save, a 3.18 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROTATION IN 2010: A

The Rays might have kind of a weird platoon set up in RF with Matt Joyce starting against righties and Ben Zobrist against lefties with Sean Rodriguez starting at 2B when Zobrist is in RF. That would mean that 25-year old lefty swinging Matt Joyce would get the most playing time in RF for the Rays in 2010. Joyce played in 11 games for the Rays last season in which he was 6 of 32 (.188 avg, .770 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 3 homers, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Joyce also played in 111 games in AAA-ball last season in which he was 114 of 417 (.273 avg, .855 OPS) with 73 runs scored, 16 homers, 66 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Joyce didn’t make any errors in 5 games in RF last season but he didn’t show much range. He will need to improve his defense a bit if the Rays are going to trust him in 2010.

28-year old switch hitting Ben Zobrist played in 59 error-free games in RF for the Rays last season while showing outstanding range. If Sean Rodriguez wins the starting 2B job outright this spring then Zobrist will be the full-time RF in 2010.

34-year old righty swinging Gabe Kapler could also get some starts in RF against lefty starting pitching. Kapler played in 99 games for the Rays last season in which he was 49 of 205 (.239 avg, .768 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 8 homers, 32 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Kapler made 2 errors in 66 games in RF last season while showing outstanding range. He also had 4 assists while in RF as he has a strong arm and likes to show it off.

26-year old switch hitting speedster Fernando Perez could also get some P.T. in 2010 in RF for the Rays. Perez didn’t make any errors in 1 game in RF for the Rays last season. He has outstanding range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RF IN 2010: B